Mr. Ramesha residing in Areuru village, of Somwarpet taluk, is the bread winner for his family, consisting seven members. He owns two acres of land in Areuru (Chikkabbur watershed area).

Before Project:

Mr. Ramesh was cultivating coffee which did not produce much, as he had to depend on rain for his crop and he had seen continuous soil erosion and deterioration of the fertility of his land. He had to struggle without water for irrigation. The yield from the coffee was only 250 kgs and of low quality. He was alternatively growing orange, but even these plants did not fetch him much income because of lack of water. Scarcity of water affected him grievously. His cattle too, did not have sufficient water for drinking, To sustain his family, he worked as a daily wage labourer.

During the Project:

The NABARD Watershed measures for Soil and Water Conservation came as a boon to this poor farmer. He attended a Grama Sabha meeting where he learnt about the new innovations in the project, targeted to increase the productivity of land. He paid great attention to what he heard that day and eagerly waited to implement the same in his lands. He planned with ODP for 42 cum of SCT and a Farm Pond and the same were implemented for him. The farm pond measures 10 X 10 X 3 meters and is able to harvest 1,42,000 litres of water.

Impact:

The farm pond is always full during rainy season and during summer, the farm pond retains about eight to ten feet of water. Soil fertility has increased, as soil erosion has stopped. He irrigates his Coffee and Silver Oak trees regularly. Presently his coffee yield is more than 600 kgs. and the coffee seeds are of good quality. He is also growing Orange crop and rearing fish in the farm pond. His cattle have enough water to drink, from the farm pond.

His betterment has been a good example to neighbouring farmers. Farmers from other villages come to see his farm and learn from his experiences. He happily and proudly explains the wonder of the farm pond.

Ramesh says – “My life has changed. NABARD and ODP have added more value to my life. Now I can keep my family happy, as I have become a happy man. I am planning to extend the Farm Pond. Thanks to NABARD and ODP.”